


</reboot>

by thirteenblackbirds



Category: NieR: Automata (Video Game)
Genre: F/M, Gen, Post-Ending E (NieR: Automata), Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-03
Updated: 2020-05-03
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:34:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 723
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23977546
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thirteenblackbirds/pseuds/thirteenblackbirds
Summary: After the end, 9S wakes.  Spoilers for ending E.
Relationships: 2B & 9S (NieR: Automata), 2B/9S (NieR: Automata)
Kudos: 44





	

**Author's Note:**

> This game tore my heart out multiple times and I really just needed to walk through the door they left open for a somewhat happy ending.

the sound and sight of static are what alert him to the darkness. he's been cocooned in it for so long - darkness and silence - that he doesn't even notice its presence, doesn't register its all-encompassing embrace, until that faint flicker of noise within his internal processors. 

then, just as the awareness of darkness knocks on his consciousness, he feels his systems booting up, his vision flooding with light and the familiar load sequence script with just a touch of fuzziness at the edges that indicates a need for maintenance sooner rather than later. 

as his sensory and auditory systems come online, he hears rustling, a familiar whirring, and feels a soft prickliness underneath him that a second later his memory identifies as grass.

a second after that, 9S explodes into full consciousness, his memory data storage helpfully picking up at the last available save point: with a cold white sword through his gut, bleeding out atop an inorganic mimicked Tower. his processors slam into overdrive as he gasps, fingers scrabbling for his stomach, the memory of pain searing through his body.

"alert: unit 9S' systems reaching critical capacity. risk of overheating if systems acceleration continues."

"pod...?" confusion wars with despair and 9S is fortunate for his foundational programming then as his scanner algorithms forcibly steer him into rationality. he is dimly aware of a virus check running in the background, so far displaying an all-clear.

"affirmative. temperature and black box signals returning to acceptable parameters." the briefest beat of silence before: "good morning, unit 9S."

his hands are still pressed to his stomach, but his mind has caught up to the fact (if not the reason) there is no longer a sword embedded there. aside from the persistent buzz of static, he appears to be functioning normally. his pod's standard greeting prompts a shaky laugh. "good morning, pod." where am i? what happened? did i die? is this death? if so, where... "2B." he looks around frantically, emotions clawing again in his chest, his black box humming like angry wasps. "2B!"

"unit 2B has not yet rebooted."

yet... "explain!" he bites out the order sharply.

"pod 042 is completing the final check of her systems. unit 2B had to be rebuilt as repair was deemed insufficient. as a result, pod 042 determined a final check to be prudent prior to attempting reactivation."

9S concentrates on breathing as he listens to his pod's words. 2B is ... well, alive may be getting ahead of himself but rebuilt. they were able to rebuild her and the pods think there is a decent chance of reactivation. "where is she?" 

"follow me." pod 153 leads him into an adjacent room, separated by a crumbling, vine-covered wall and 9S sees her. the sight of her, whole and in deceptively well-repair, leaves him breathless and he feels his system temperature rising again as he struggles to maintain a semblance of control. disturbingly, his right hand twitches with a sudden urge for his sword.

he balls his hands tightly into fists, his nails digging into skin. love, fury, desperation, despair overwhelm him, his visuals fading to black and white momentarily. 

"alert: abnormal functionality detected." pod 153 sounds alarmed, if possible. "proposal —"

"i'm fine, i'm fine." 9S cuts her off, knowing that she was about to suggest him leaving. "i'm fine," he repeats and, unbidden, he hears 21O's voice in his head ('a single affirmation will suffice.'). 

"analysis complete." that is pod 042 and 9S tears himself away from fresh grief to focus on the other machine. 

"is she....?"

"unit 2B is ready for reactivation." there's a slight pause, as though 042 is weighing his next words. "warning: although unit 2B's body has been rebuilt to specification and memory data has been fully uploaded, it is unknown whether reboot will be successful."

"i know," 9S whispers, kneeling by 2B's side, hands reaching out shakily for hers. "you can't calculate the success rate but i know 2B. she's in there and she'll be fine. i came back, didn't i? and 2B is much stronger than me. she'll make it." she has to. there are still cracks in his mind left from seeing her body fall and while 9S doesn't know if they will ever mend, he knows that they will splinter irreparably if she does not come back to him. "begin reboot."

"affirmative." 


End file.
